Manchester man charged with destroying evidence, possessing marijuana

MANCHESTER — A city man was charged with destroying evidence after police thought the cigarette he was smoking smelled of marijuana and the man tried to “grind” it into the ground to destroy it, police said.

Police said two officers driving past a man smoking a cigarette in an alley near Spruce Street smelled what they said was the odor of burning marijuana. As they approached the man, he tossed the cigarette aside and stepped on it.

Bakr El Maaergi, 35, was charged with falsifying physical evidence, possession of a controlled drug, resisting arrest and violating bail conditions. Police said he also had hand-rolled cigarettes that later tested positive for marijuana, and was out on bail in connection with a similar incident.

Convenience store robbed

A gunman threatened to shoot the clerk at a Massabesic Street convenience store Monday night during a robbery, police said. The man described as being a hispanic male in his 20s approached the clerk, and made the threat to shoot him. No gun was shown, but the clerk noted the man’s right hand was in his pocket and may have been concealing a gun.

The suspect is described as being in his 20s, about 6 feet tall, with a goatee.